June 2009
GRIEVANCE
Introduced on the 6 April was the new ACAS Guidance on Discipline and Grievance. Many employers may wish to review and possibly revise their internal grievance procedures and train their managers to recognise grievances before they become a complicated and real issue.
Many organisations and managers may be unclear as to what constitutes a grievance and how to informally deal with them.
· A grievance may be raised initially in a number of ways; email, letter, correspondence from a 3rd party, even a post-it note. A grievance might also be wrapped up in paperwork dealing with another matter.
· The actual intention of the employee is not relevant, nor is there any need for the employee to make it clear they intend taking further action.
· Most crucially, a complaint doesn’t need to be made through the employers accepted procedure for it to constitute a formal ‘step 1’ grievance statement, nor does the employee need to go through a company grievance procedure.
What does all this mean in reality? Organisations and manager have a duty of care towards their employees and it is an important part of the manager’s role to pick up on unhappiness or disquiet amongst the workforce and to deal with the issue before it manifests as a formal grievance. This is the pastoral role of managers and many problems can be sorted out if dealt with early enough.
Problems grow. Recognise and deal with quickly. Take action to avoid repetition.
Priory will be able to help and give practical advice as well as train staff to recognise and deal with grievances. Contact us to discuss how we could help.
EXPENSES
Much has been printed and said about expenses over the past month. Can you be sure your expenses regime is fair and not open to abuse? It is good practice to have a robust expenses and policy procedure and unlike the parliamentary system, ‘fiddling’ expenses is a disciplinary offence and could constitute gross misconduct resulting in dismissal.
Take the opportunity now to review your policies and procedures.
May 2009
DISCIPLINE AND GRIEVANCE Also introduced on the 6 April was the new ACAS Guidance on Discipline and Grievance. Many employers may wish to review and possibly revise their internal discipline procedures and possibly simplify them to make them appropriate and suitable to their particular circumstances. Priory will be able to help and give practical advice. Contact us to discuss how we could help. Priory Consulting associates, being CIPD members, have extensive experience in dealing with poor performance, discipline and grievance cases and can provide an external, independent, resource for dealing with both cases and appeals. WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT Now is a perfect time to invest in Workforce Development. Prepare your employees and ensure that they are best placed to deal with the upturn as well as ensure that your employees provide the best possible service or product now. Competition is fierce, make sure you’re the best. Have a look at our website to see how we can help. We may also be able to secure some funding to help. if you’d like to address stress, please contact us.
March 2009
February 2009
Funding for Training
There is no better time to invest in training and the Government can help with funding. If you have 5 or more employees, there may be funding available for management and leadership training. Currently business owners, MDs and CEOs etc can apply for a grant of £500 for their own personal development. An additional £500 (which must be match funded) is available for other managers.
Absence Management
After the recent problems with travel and absenteeism caused by the snow, have you given any thought what absence costs your business? Unplanned absence cost the UK economy billions of pounds and can be particularly disruptive to the smaller business.
Absence should be robustly managed, including dismissal if that is appropriate and yes, you can dismiss a member of staff who is sick, although the process can be drawn out and must be correctly documented.
Certainly, absence must be managed but all too often the action addresses the symptoms rather than the cause. Have you ever wondered why so many staff are sick with Stress, Headaches, Migraine, Back Pain etc? Maybe, just maybe, there is a problem in the workplace which they are trying to avoid.
Can you afford to get it wrong?
With effect from 1 February 2009 Tribunal Compensation Limits were increased. Unfair dismissal is now set at £10,500 (maximum 30 weeks’ pay). Breach of Contract now has an upper limit of £25,000 and a weeks pay for statutory calculations is now £350.
Get the Best from your Staff
Now is the best time to look at the effectiveness and efficiency of your staff and taking advantage of any slowdown to invest in training to ensure your business is best placed to meet demand as conditions improve and the Government can help with funding.
If you have 5 or more employees,(including volunteers) there may be funding available for management and leadership training. Currently business owners, MDs and CEOs etc can apply for a grant of £500 for their own personal development. An additional £500 (which must be match funded) is available for other managers.
Please contact us for more information on this scheme
January 2009
New legislation is just around the corner.
6 April 2009 sees the introduction of legislation designed to make discipline, grievance and managing poor performers easier.
The complex and rigorous procedures currently in place are to be repealed and replaced by simpler and more company relevant procedures aimed at making flexible and timely resolution the objective. True, there will need to be guidelines, and we expect the new ACAS code of practice to be issued shortly, but now is the time to review and revise disciplinary and grievance procedures and cut out unnecessary bureaucracy.
Other significant changes in April includes the increase of Statutory Paid Holidays from 24 to 28 days and the right to request flexible working is to be extended to parents of children up to the age of 16.
It is understandable that the smaller employer will find these changes difficult for a number of reasons, some will be sound, but others may result from misunderstandings. We can help with these changes and demonstrate the advantages of a happy and motivated workforce.
Let us help you to cope with the recession and make sure that your policies, processes and procedures are legally compliant and suit the requirements of your particular business.
Stress in the Workplace
1 in 5 people say that they find their work either very or extremely stressful which leads to a total of 13.4 million working days lost to stress and related conditions at a cost to society of £3.8 billion a year (HSE 2008)
Are you aware of the Management Standards for Work-related Stress? These standards look at the
· Demands - which looks at issues like workload, work patterns,and the workplace environment.
· Control – how much say the person has in the way they do there work
· Support – Looks at encouragement, sponsorship and resources provided by the organisation, managers and colleagues
· Relationships – including promoting positive working to avaoid conflict and unacceptable behaviour
· Role – Ensuring people understand their role within the organisation
Priory can assist with developing working within these standards, which will ensure that you are able to get the very best from your staff and also provide stress awareness training for you and your employees
STATUTORY LEAVE ENTITLEMENTS
As you are aware, statutory leave entitlements were increased on 6 April 2009 to 5.6 weeks paid leave. This may include 8 days public or English bank holiday days.
For the avoidance of future misunderstanding and setting of precedence it is important for both employer and employee to clearly understand whether leave entitlements are inclusive or exclusive of public and Bank Holidays.
The key points to remember are:
· Statutory holiday entitlements are calculated in weeks not days.
· There is no statutory right to time off on bank holidays
· There is no statutory right to enhanced pay or TOIL for working on a bank holiday
· Legislation limits statutory leave entitlement to 28 days, even for people working more that five days per week
· Contracts should clearly state how bank holidays are treated and whether staff are expected to work on some, or all of these.